CyberRes says it has released its first Annual Report on the current state of cyberthreats and an overview of cyber events in 2021. This strategic report signifies another milestone of the advanced threat research journey that started with the launch of the immersive Galaxy Online platform in January 2022 to deliver better cyber resiliency to the market.
The research shows that threats have rapidly evolved to target the growing threat surface of organisations that have incorporated digital into their business growth DNA. As organisations move quickly to adopt digital as a competitive differentiator, adversaries are equally quick at exploiting vulnerabilities in the digital value chain.
The 2022 CyberRes Galaxy Annual Report is the first in a series to provide a perspective on geopolitical, regional, and industry threat conditions as well as what to expect throughout the year.
Some of the key findings for 2021 outlined in the report include:
- The most impacted regions were North America, which experienced 33.5 per cent of the total cyber issues reported, followed by Asia-Pacific at 23.5 per cent and Europe at 20 per cent.
- Globally, approximately 19.3 per cent of the cyberattacks were ransomware.
- The services sector was most targeted globally, with 33.7 per cent of cyberattacks, followed by the public sector (21.4 per cent).
- In Australia and New Zealand, the telecommunication and technology sectors experienced the most cyberattacks at 35.7 per cent, followed by financial services at 18.5 per cent and the healthcare sector at 11.4 per cent.
- Approximately 33 per cent of the total cyberattacks conducted in the Asia-Pacific region were meant for cyber espionage, followed by financial gain.
- In more than 24 per cent of the cyberattacks in 2021 in the Asia-Pacific region, threat actors chose to exfiltrate sensitive data from their victims’ networks. In addition, spear-phishing and social engineering campaigns were actively used to gain initial access to enterprise networks during cyber operations.
Mark Fernandes, global CTO at CyberRes, said, “Everyone is at risk from feeling direct or indirect impacts from cyberattacks, as all records were smashed last year in terms of the sheer number of cyberattacks on government entities, private sector organisations, and individuals. Unfortunately, this trend is continuing in 2022. One of the key effective defences is to maintain a clear understanding of the current landscape, tactics, and threats that could be emerging.”
You can read the full report here.
